1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed generally to methods and systems for managing access to services and, more particularly in some embodiments, to methods and systems for managing access to services utilizing a personal area network to ensure security of the services.
2. Description of the Background
The Internet in general, and the World Wide Web in particular, provide an excellent capability for distributing information widely. However, information that needs to be distributed in a controlled manner on the Internet must be placed under an access control system. Such systems require careful management to preserve adequate security. One prior art method for attempting to preserve such security is to protect access through use of passwords. However, passwords are often forgotten or exposed, thereby making management of passwords cumbersome and insecure. Another prior art method for attempting to preserve such security is based on public keys. However, this method assumes a satisfactory (i.e., secure) method for distributing the public keys; to do so over the Internet is cumbersome. Thus, there exists a need for a method and system for preserving adequate security of information to be distributed under these circumstances.
Personal Digital Assistants (“PDAs”) are one type of mobile computer that provide small size and weight by accepting constraints on other features. Such limits involve size and quality of display, size and speed of memory, processing speed, longevity and expense of power supply, nature and quality of data entry facilities, and availability and quality of network connectivity. Personal area networking (“PAN”) is a family of networking technologies that can be used for wireless communication in the vicinity of an individual carrying a mobile computer with PAN capabilities. Many PDAs currently provide PAN using infrared light.
While PDAs are convenient at meetings for keeping notes, to-do lists, calendar events, and updating contact lists, they are limited in their ability to carry and transmit content and offer other services. A large document may not fit within the memory of a PDA. Available network connectivity may be inadequate to convey the document in a reasonable amount of time. Limits on PDA screen size may make the receiving device unsuitable for viewing the document. Moreover, it is often useful to provide network content distribution device functions more general than document access, and PDAs are inappropriate for providing most services of this kind. Thus, there exists a need for a system that capitalizes on the strengths of PDAs but also accounts for their shortcomings.